Negative-acting photoresists, commonly referred to as negative resists, are useful in photolithographic and photomasking operations in fabricating microelectronic devices, printed circuits, semiconductors, printing plates, dies and the like. Negative resists typically contain a coupler resin and a photosensitizer compound dissolved in an organic solvent. The negative resist film is deposited from the solvent on the surface of a suitable substrate as by spin casting, dipping, spraying or screen printing. In microelectronic applications, the substrate is typically a silicon or modified silicon plate or wafer and, in printed circuit applications, a metal-clad plastic. After the film is deposited and the solvent is removed as by evaporation by the application of elevated temperatures ("softbake"), a portion of the film is exposed to a source of radiation, such as ultraviolet light, through a photomask. The photosensitizer in the resist is selected because of its ability to absorb the exposing radiation and cause the coupler resin to become insoluble in a solvent that will dissolve the unexposed portions of the resist film. The conversion of the exposed film is typically caused by a crosslinking reaction of the coupler resin with the activated photosensitizer compound. The unexposed portion of the film is then removed by the application of a solvent, known as a developer, to form an image on the surface. The imaged surface may then be treated, as by etching, ion implantation or other processes useful in the production of a functional integrated circuit. Following this treatment, the remaining exposed resist film may be removed or stripped by a suitable solvent.